Incidental captures of Eastern Spotted Skunk in a high-elevation Red Spruce forest in Virginia

Spilogale putorius (Eastern Spotted Skunk) is considered rare in the southern Appalachian Mountains and throughout much of its range. We report incidental captures of 6 Eastern Spotted Skunks in a high-elevation Picea rubens (Red Spruce) forest in southwestern Virginia during late February and March 2014. At 1520 m, these observations are the highest-elevation records for Eastern Spotted Skunk in the Appalachian Mountains. They are also the first known records of this species using Red Spruce forests in the southern Appalachians.